HBC Parking Into The Wind

[Jeff Point]

Jeff, is there any data from the North 40, even if anecdotal? They park both ways.

I dunno, but I know who to ask. Stand by for further…

[Kyle Boatright]

To lift an idea from "The Hunger Games", I think the odds would always be in our favor parked into the wind.

1) In general, aircraft would be facing the prevailing winds and control surfaces would typically be in trail, reducing the chances of them getting slammed around.

2) I think both nosegear and tailwheel aircraft, properly secured, won't go anywhere in strong headwinds. The aircraft I've seen wrecked at Oshkosh were all turned away from the wind and when the tail broke loose, bad things happened. Obviously, there are no guarantees that aircraft will be properly secured, but I think the odds are generally improved with the aircraft facing the wind.

Aside: The nice little Sopwith Pup replica parked at the Replica Fighter Association HQ actually broke loose during the storm. I don't know why it didn't get shredded, but we walked up on it that evening, repaired the broken rope that had previously held the tail and tightened the ropes attached to the wings. The aircraft was secured by "the claw" and whoever tied it down didn't follow the instructions on how to use that system. Maybe someone needs to walk the field an hour after aircraft arrive and give tie-down guidance. There are people who could use help there...

[Gary.Sobek]

I have been going with the flow and parking as the volunteers request I park.

Parking into the wind may help but if people do not have gust locks and take precautions to secure their flight surfaces I am of the opinion that it may not be enough. Over the years, I have gone from using gust locks outside the airplane to just placing the seatbelt around the stick. I have had my external gust locks blow off in strong winds. Yes there was one fatal accident where poor preflight did not remove the PAX seatbelt from the stick.

Most likely there is not one single solution. Owner / operators MUST do what is best to secure their aircraft for gusty conditions and heavy precipitation. Just relying on direction of parking is not the complete solution but may be part of the solution.

I know that the homebuilt parking chairman is looking out for the best interest of all of us but we still must do our best to secure our own aircraft.

[rockwoodrv9a]

I havent flown in but is there a reason you couldnt swing you plane into the wind if you wanted to? Maybe with wet grass it would be difficult but who would stop you? I bet you would have a bunch of people do the same.

[Jeff Point]

I havent flown in but is there a reason you couldnt swing you plane into the wind if you wanted to? Maybe with wet grass it would be difficult but who would stop you? I bet you would have a bunch of people do the same.

No reason at all. As long as you stay within the footprint of your parking spot, you can swing it around to face the other direction, and a few folks do so. We haven't really emphasized it but that is something we are also looking at for next year.

[Jeff Point]

The aircraft was secured by "the claw" and whoever tied it down didn't follow the instructions on how to use that system. Maybe someone needs to walk the field an hour after aircraft arrive and give tie-down guidance. There are people who could use help there...

Bingo. I see thousands of tie downs each year and a shockingly high percent are improperly installed, particularly "The Claw" which has become very popular. We try our best to correct folks who are doing it wrong but it often isn't caught until after the plane is tied down, and some folks just don't like to take friendly advice.

I am convinced that many of the reports of "failures" of this system over the years were due to improper installation.

Here's a photo from this year of a random RV in HBP. This owner put on a clinic on how not to install The Claw, but he is far from the only one.

[keen9]

I vote for parking into the wind.

[DSetser]

I can't vote for arbitrarily turning everyone in HBC toward the west; Jeff Point's comment about unintended consequences is spot on. If I did my research correctly, peak winds during the Saturday storm were out of the south-southwest at 36G60ish. How much of that wind was the result of frontal passage and how much was outflow from the storm? I'd submit that outflow was a major contributor and could be very different during the next storm. If individual owners want to pivot in their tiedown spots based on their expectations of the wind, that's up to them.

Seems to me that the better solution is education/awareness of selection and correct use of good tiedown *and* control lock solutions on vulnerable airplanes like big-rudder RVs.

Dave

[Kyle Boatright]

I'd submit that outflow was a major contributor and could be very different during the next storm.

The law of averages says the typical storm at Osh is out of the West. That's my experience over almost 30 years of attending the show. I think we should park aircraft to avoid the most likely threat, not the most recent threat. And that means facing West.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not adamant about it, but I do think it improves the odds.

[Kevin O'Halloran]

I've gripped about the planes near registration all pointing to the east--The guys at registration have also complained--Does no good-- The people at parking ( FLO) just say that " its always been done that way--so we are not changing"